Cavite special election peaceful, winner to be proclaimed Sunday - Comelec

The winner of the special election in Cavite to fill the congressional seat vacated by Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla will be proclaimed on Sunday, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Saturday.
 
Thousands of voters from the seventh legislative district of Cavite participated in the special election, which Comelec Chairman George Garcia described as “very peaceful.”

“Overall naman, yung pagho-hold natin ng special election dito po sa ika-pitong distrito [ng Cavite] ay napakatahimik,” Garcia said in an ambush interview in Amadeo, Cavite.

(Overall, the conduct of the special election here in the seventh district of Cavite was very peaceful.)
 
He said the proclamation of a new congressman would be held on Sunday morning.
 
“Ngayong gabi po ineexpect natin sa tatlong bayan at isang siyudad ay matatapos po ang municipal at city board canvassing, katulad po dito sa Amadeo unti unti na pong pumapasok ang result, unti unti na pong dinadala dito yung mga SD cards upang manually maupload sa ating mga consolidation system,” he said.

(Tonight, we expect the municipal and city board canvassing to be completed in three towns and one city, just like here in Amadeo, where the results are slowly coming in and the SD cards are slowly being brought here to be manually uploaded to our consolidation system.)
 
“Ang ibig sabihin po mula ngayong gabi hanggang mamayang madaling araw ang ating provincial board of canvassers ay tatanggap lang, may reception ng lahat ng results dito sa tatlong bayan at isang siyudad kung kaya't maaaring magsimula sila ng canvass mula 8 a.m. hanggang 10 a.m. para magproclaim,” he added.
 
(This means that from tonight until tomorrow morning, our provincial board of canvassers will accept the results here from three towns and one city, so they can canvass from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and then proclaim.)

Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco said all 426 clustered precincts in the 75 voting centers of the municipalities of Amadeo, Indang, and Tanza, as well as Trece Martires City, opened at 6 a.m. and closed at 7 p.m.

Garcia, however, said that they encountered difficulties as some of the voting precincts in Amadeo were located on the third and fourth floors of the building, making it difficult for senior citizen voters.

In the future, Garcia said they will require election officers to submit a precinct map that contains emergency accessible polling places (EAPP) for the elderly.

“Dapat pong malaman ng lahat ng mga kababayan natin na laging priority, ang centerpiece pong bagong liderato ng Comelec ay lagi yung ating mga vulnerable sector,” he added.

(The public should know that the priority, the centerpiece of the new Comelec leadership, is always our vulnerable sectors.)
 
There are 355,184 registered voters in the seventh legislative district of Cavite.
 
The following candidates vied for the post: Jose Angelito Domingo Aguinaldo (independent), Melencio Loyola De Sagun, Jr. (independent), Crispin Diego Diaz Remulla (National Unity Party), and Michael Angelo Bautista Santos (independent).
 
Carmona, Cavite
 
Meanwhile, Garcia said the poll body was ready to hold a plebiscite in Carmona, Cavite after President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. had signed into law a measure converting the municipality of Carmona into a component city of the province of Cavite.

“Sa kasalukuyan wala pang natatanggap na official recommendation ang Comelec patungkol sa paglagda ng ating Pangulo sa pagiging city ng Carmona, kung ano man po yun makakatanggap kami. Definitely po handang handa ang Comelec na ihold ang plebisito,” he added.
 
(Currently, the Comelec has not received any official recommendation regarding our President's approval of Carmona becoming a city; whatever it is, we will definitely receive it; the Comelec is ready to hold a plebiscite.)
 
Republic Act 11938 was signed by the chief executive on February 23.
 
It mandates the holding of a plebiscite within 60 days of the approval of the law.
 
Unless otherwise provided by law, Carmona shall continue to be part of the fifth legislative district of Cavite province. — VBL, GMA Integrated News